The people closest to us are the most likely to be neglected unless we make a conscious effort to prioritize them in our lives.
Like most, I’ve been a culprit of not prioritizing the people that matter most to me. I tell myself, I’m too busy as an excuse not to send a quick message or make a call to the people that matter.
Particularly my parents, who I don’t call enough.
Tim Urban wrote a brilliant break down about the tail end of one’s life, see the key three takeaways he mentions at the end of his post:
1) Living in the same place as the people you love matters. I probably have 10X the time left with the people who live in my city as I do with the people who live somewhere else.
2) ) Priorities matter. Your remaining face time with any person depends largely on where that person falls on your list of life priorities. Make sure this list is set by you—not by unconscious inertia.
3) Quality time matters. If you’re in your last 10% of time with someone you love, keep that fact in the front of your mind when you’re with them and treat that time as what it actually is: precious.
Tim Urban, The Tail End
This post is a note to self:
Be more conscious of how you allocate your time for the people that matter. When in doubt take the time to make a phone call, send that message, or fly across the country to see someone. You won’t ever regret it.
